Well Andy's 'racket smashing' was so outrageous that I didn't even see it. I just saw him going to change his racquet before his own serve and couldn't understand what the booing was about. Now did anyone boo at the 3-5 drops of water fiasco? I think not because Andy's fans are too gracious for such disrespectful behaviour. Even if we booed in the privacy of our own homes.

Well Andy's 'racket smashing' was so outrageous that I didn't even see it. I just saw him going to change his racquet before his own serve and couldn't understand what the booing was about. Now did anyone boo at the 3-5 drops of water fiasco? I think not because Andy's fans are too gracious for such disrespectful behaviour. Even if we booed in the privacy of our own homes.

Federer stalled a lot of time just examining the drops and delaying the match. It could easily read as gamesmanship given the timing of the match. And no, no one booed. But if I had known what was going to follow afterwards here in London, and if I were there at the Shanghai match, I would have booed him. I don't care who he is –everyone should be judged by the same standard and to teach him and his fans a lesson, I’d take particular interest in booing him. I am not vindictive but I am all for justice being done and it has to be in the way so that they can learn from it. I can’t let a wrongdoing go like that. Fair is fair. Next time they are on the verge of booing another player no matter who he is, they’ll think twice. They’ll think about the consequences that will follow afterwards.

I have no respect for Federer. He pretty much lets his fans get away with it and in fact, thrives on it. He is not the first man to be popular on earth and won’t be the last.

I loved the championship point and the way he reacted...made me get up from my seat too and cheer for him..Oh God, Nole is really good ....Andy will have a tough time in 2013. They are the new Roger-Rafa.

yeah Andy is going to have to lift his game to an even higher level next year to get ahead of him and ultimately win some more majors. I think its very important how he starts the forthcoming season. The training block he has with Lendl for the first time, will, i feel prove critical to his season ahead...more so than ever.

Me too Dave!In fact,in a way it's really weird-I only discovered this forum this summer,but I've loved tennis since I started taking lessons when i was really small,and I've been an Andy fan in particular for years.So other years,when off-season came,I'd obviously wish it'd hurry up and be Jan (though I do love christmas,so there's that).But this year,I've gotten so used to coming on here and chatting with everyone all the time about anything going on with Andy,looking forward to the matches together,etc,that now I'm even more dismayed that it's off-season!Oh well-gotta remember that off-season always means it's nearly christmas time

Dani, it's weird, I'm in a similar situation to you. I only discovered this forum after Wimbledon, after years of looking for somewhere to talk about Andy in particular, and the sport in general.

Before I had Sky Sport, a couple of years back, I was restricted to watching the tennis the BBC condescended to show, so I suppose I was used to having not only the off season, but chunks of the year without my 'fix'. Now there is Sky Sport, but there is also here. Like you, I've got used to coming on, looking forward to tournaments, matches, seeing Andy's draw and picking them apart with everyone. I must also say that I am glad that I no longer feel uncomfortable with my dislike for a certain 'other' player, and that is due to a lot of people on here. It's nice to know there isn't much wrong with me after all, and I'm not somehow morally flawed, well, not much.......

The trouble is, all that sense of feeling like a team, all pulling for Andy (well, nearly all of us) is muted now I suppose, because it's the off season. I'm going to miss the tennis for a while. Still, there is a whole new year of it to look forward to. Roll on 2013!

That's so good to see. I thought it was something like that, but I must admit it is hard to keep track. I think it puts a lot into perspective and indicates where the future of the sport lies, between Novak and Andy.

Federer stalled a lot of time just examining the drops and delaying the match. It could easily read as gamesmanship given the timing of the match. And no, no one booed. But if I had known what was going to follow afterwards here in London, and if I were there at the Shanghai match, I would have booed him. I don't care who he is –everyone should be judged by the same standard and to teach him and his fans a lesson, I’d take particular interest in booing him. I am not vindictive but I am all for justice being done and it has to be in the way so that they can learn from it. I can’t let a wrongdoing go like that. Fair is fair. Next time they are on the verge of booing another player no matter who he is, they’ll think twice. They’ll think about the consequences that will follow afterwards.

I have no respect for Federer. He pretty much lets his fans get away with it and in fact, thrives on it. He is not the first man to be popular on earth and won’t be the last.

EJ, I could not agree more.

I am not vindictive, not at all. I must admit that I don't always like the way I feel about Federer. I don't like giving in to the negativity of it all, I feel it somehow lowers me. I must admit though, in his case I can't help it. The man makes my blood boil and always has, even before Andy was at the top of the sport.

I remember, many years ago, watching Henman beat Federer at Wimbledon, and I didn't like Federer then. I could see he had potential to be a great player, but I remember a sense, even then, that he was obnoxious. I also remember thinking that he was little more than a spotty bloke with a ponytail that looked ridiculous, but there we are.

I've said it before, but I will say it again, just for clarity. If Federer had distanced himself from all the booing in his press conference, or issued a statement to distance himself from it, I wouldn't feel half as angry about it as I still do. I'm not saying I would like it, of course not, but I would feel that Federer had done something to, in a sense, take his fans in hand. Instead, he seems to have got a kick out of the 'support' he received, and has used it in his own sarcastic and underhand way to send the message to Andy that he is more popular than Andy is in Andy's own country. I just think that makes him seem incredibly spiteful.

yeah Andy is going to have to lift his game to an even higher level next year to get ahead of him and ultimately win some more majors. I think its very important how he starts the forthcoming season. The training block he has with Lendl for the first time, will, i feel prove critical to his season ahead...more so than ever.

The thing is though, with Andy and Novak it comes down to tiny margins. It always has, it always will. I don't think it is clear at all that Andy has a great deal to do to catch Novak. He knows it isn't easy, but it never has been.

The exciting thing, I think, is that Andy is yet to spend a proper training block with Lendl. They will be doing that during this off season. The thing is though, look how far Andy has come this year, in fact during last year too, even without that training block. I'm not technical in my understanding of the game really, but I can see the improvement Andy has made in a number of different areas. Next year I am sure that he will push on with that, grow in confidence and take on board things he needs to learn to be even better.